Aquihelicascus W. Dong, H. Zhang & Doilom, Fungal Divers (2020).
MycoBank number: MB 557806; Index Fungorum number: IF 557806; Facesoffungi number: FoF 08721; 3 morphological species (Dong et al. 2020), 1 species with molecular data
Type species – Aquihelicascus thalassioideus (K.D. Hyde & Aptroot) W. Dong & H. Zhang, Fungal Divers (2020).
≡ Massarina thalassioidea K.D. Hyde & Aptroot, Nova Hedwigia 66(3-4): 498 (1998)
= Helicascus thalassioideus (K.D. Hyde & Aptroot) Huang Zhang & K.D. Hyde, Sydowia 65(1): 159 (2013)
Notes – Aquihelicascus was introduced to accommodate the three species, A. thalassioideus (type species), A. songkhlaensis and A. yunnanensis (Dong et al. 2020), based on phylogenetic analyses. The three species formed a clade sister to Helicascus but as a different genus. Aquihelicascus differs from Helicascus in having clavate asci, with uncoiled endoascus, 2-seriate, ellipsoidal, symmetrical, hyaline ascospores, with rounded ends, while Helicascus has subcylindrical asci, with coiled endoascus, 1-seriate, obovoid, asymmetrical, brown ascospores, with apiculate ends (Luo et al. 2016, Dong et al. 2020).
Species